California and cities in the Bay Area have led the country against plastic pollution: A series of laws and ordinances have already banned Styrofoam and restricted plastic bags and plastic straws. The next items on the chopping block are single-use plastic foodware — things like cutlery, cups, lids, stirrers, plates, and doggie bags. On Dec. 19, Oakland City Council will vote on the Reusable Foodware and Litter Reduction Ordinance, which would ban these items from local eateries and large events. …
Ricky Brown wakes up and rolls down the window of his home: a 1981 Chevy truck parked on a hot, treeless block near the Coliseum in East Oakland. Just a few miles away, Nancy Wellington leaves her four-bedroom house in the city’s Rockridge neighborhood to walk her poodle along a shady, tree-lined street. Rockridge is over four times greener than the Coliseum area, which has just 5% tree coverage. This makes the area more prone to air pollution, heat island…